The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1887-05-06
JESS.
RyH.RIDER HAcGARD. .
nReret'lQns seiemoHsupes SkTEte
CHAPTER VII.


do so want you to advise me; that Is, to tel
me what you think, and she paused.
"You must tell me what it is all about first
Bessie DEAR" she said, sitting down opposite
to her in such a position that her face was
shaded from the light. Bessie tapped her
naked foot against the mating with which
the little room was carpeted. 1t was an ex.
ceedingly pretty foot.
"Well, dear old girl, it is just this-Franl,
Muller has been here to ask me to marry
him."
"Oh," said Jess, with a sigh of relief, $50
that was ALI" She felt as though a ton
weight had been lifted from her heart. She
had expected that bit Of news for some time.
ale wanted me to marry him, and when
said would not he behaved like-like"-
alike Boer," suggested Jess.
alike a BRUTE" went on Bessie, with en-
phasis.
$50 you don't like Frank Muller9"
alike him loathe the man. You don't
know how I loathe him, with his handsome,
bad face and his cruel eyes. always loathed
him, and now hate him, too. But will
tell you all about it," and she did, with many
feminine comments and interpretations
Jess sat quite still and waited till she had
finished.
~Wen, DEAR" she said, at last, "you are not
going to marry him, and 20 there is an end Of
it. You can't detest the man more than I do.
have watched him for years." she went on,
with rising anger, "and I tell you that Frank
Muller is liar and traitor. That man
would betray his own father if he thought It
to his own interest to do So He hates uncle
am sure be does, although he pretends to
be SO fond Of him. I am sure that he has
tried often and often to stir up the Boers
against him. Old Hans Coetzee told me that
he denounced him to the Weld Cornet as ON
'uitlander and 'verdomde Engelsmann'
about two years before the annexation, and
tried to get him to persuade the Landdrost to
report him as law breaker to the Rad;
while all the time he was pretending to be so
friendly. Then in the Sikukuni war it was
Frank Muller who caused them to commander
uncle's two best wagons and the spans. He
gave none himself, nothing but a couple
Of bags Of meal He Is a wicked fellow,
Bessie, and a dangerous fellow; but he has
more brains and more power about him than
any man in the Transvaal, and you will have
to be very careful, or he will do US all bad
turn"
"Ah!" said Bessie; "well, he can't do much
u am not SO sure Of that. I am not so
sure that the country is going to stop
English. You laugh at me for reading the
home papers, but see things there that
make me doubtful. The other people are in
powsr now In England. and one does not
know what they may do; you heard what
uncle said tonight. They might give us up
to the Beers. You must remember that we
far away people are only the counters with
which they play their game"
Nonsense, JESS" said Bessie Indignantly.
"Englishmen are not like that. When they
say thing they stick to it,"
"They used to, you mean," answered jess
with shrug, and got up from her chair to 60
to he'd.
Bessie began to fidget her white feet over
ore another.
"Stop bit, Jess DEAR" she said II want to
speak to you about something else"
Jess sat, or rather dropped, back into her
chair, and her pale face turned paler than
ever, but Bessie blushed rosy red and hest
tatcd.
ut Is about Capt Mel" she said at length.
"Oh," answered Jess with little laugh, and
her voice sounded strange and cold in her
own ears. "Has he been following Frank
Muller's example and proposing to you, tooF'
MOO" said Bessie, ''but'-and here she
rose, and, sitting on a stool by her elder sis
ter's chair, rested her forehead against her
knee-'but love him and believe that he
loves me- This morning he told me that I
was the prettiest woman he had seen at home
or abroad, and the sweetest, too; and do you
KNOW" she said, looking up and giving a
happy little laugh, II think he meant it, too. ~ |
"Are you joking, Bessie, or are you really
in earnesat"
"In earnestl ali, but that am, and I am
not ashamed to say it. fell in love with
John Mel when he killed that cock ostrich.
He looked SO strong and savage as he fought
with it. It is fine thing to see a man put
out oil his strength. And then he is such a
gentleman!-so different from the men we
see round here. Oh, yes, fell in love with
him at once, and have got deeper and
deeper in love with him over since. and If he
does not marry me think that it will break
my heart. There, that's the truth, Jess
DEAR" and she dropped her golden head on to
her sisters knees, and she began to cry,
softly, at the thought.
And the sister sat there OH the chair, her
hand hanging idly by her side, her white
face set and impassive as that of an Egyptian
sphinx, and the large eyes gazing far away
oAA Ou6A tuo WHluOW, dSduiSJ WHICH, Cu0 rain
was beating-far away out into the night
and the storm. She heard the surging of the
storm, she heard her sisters weeping, her
eyes perceived the dark square of the window
through which they appeared to look, she could
feel Bessie's head upon her knees-yes, she
could see and hear and feel, and yet it seemed
TO her that she was dead. The lightning had
fallen on her soul as it fell on the pillar of
rock, and it was as the pillar was. And it
had fallen SO soonl there had been such little
span of happiness and hope! And SO she sat,
like stony sphinx. and Bessie wept softly be-
fore her, like a beautiful, breathing, loving
human suppliant, and the two formed pic
ture and contrast such as the student of
human nature does not often get the chance
IF seeing
1t was the elder sister who spoke first after
ILL
"Well, dear" she said, "what are you cry
ng about? You love Capt. Mel, and you be-
ieve that he loves you. Surely this is nothing
% cry about"
"Well, don't know that it is, )" said Bessie,
more cheerfully; "but was thinking how
lreadful it would be IL I lost him."
II don't think that you need be afraid" said
less; land now. dear, really must go to bed,
am SO tired. Good night, my dear; God
less you'll I think that you have made a